THIRD DIVISION
G.R. No. 206294, June 29, 2016
PEOPLE OF THE PHILIPPINES, Plaintiff-Appellee, v. CERILO "ILOY" ILOGON, Accused-Appellant.
RESOLUTION
PEREZ, J.:
Before us is an appeal from the Decision1 of the Court of Appeals, Cagayan de Oro City, Twenty-Second Division, in CA-G.R. CR-HC No. 00837-MIN dated 24 February 2012, which dismissed the appeal of appellant Cerilo "Iloy" Ilogon and affirmed with modification the Judgment2 dated 12 May 2010 of the Regional Trial Court (RTC) of Cagayan de Oro City, Branch 37, in Criminal Case No. 2003-324, finding appellant guilty beyond reasonable doubt of the crime of Qualified Rape.
The real name and identity of the rape victim, as well as the members of her immediate family, including other identifying information, shall not be disclosed pursuant to the Court's ruling in People v. Cabalquinto.3 We shall refer to the rape victim as AAA, her mother as BBB. The rest of AAA's relatives shall be called by their initials.
The prosecution established that in the afternoon of 15 December 2002, six (6) year-old AAA was at her aunt L's house, playing with her cousins J and P. They climbed up the roof of the house where AAA was left behind crying because she could not go down after the others. Appellant, nicknamed "Iloy" and her aunt's neighbor, helped AAA by carrying her down but towards his own house. There, appellant removed his clothes, covered AAA's mouth, kissed her and had carnal knowledge of her. AAA felt pain and cried. Afterwards, nearing nighttime, AAA ran away and went home.4ChanRoblesVirtualawlibrary
Around nine o'clock in the evening of the same day, AAA complained to her mother of bodily ache and pain and that she could not urinate as her female organ was painful. BBB examined and found it to be reddish in appearance. The next day, BBB found out about the incident from AAA's cousins J and P which AAA confirmed. BBB searched for appellant to no avail. BBB thus reported the incident to the police and thereafter, BBB brought AAA to the Northern Mindanao Medical Center (NMMC) for physical examination.5ChanRoblesVirtualawlibrary
AAA was physically examined by Dr. Harry L. Rodriguez, Medical Officer III of NMMC who reported in the Living Case Report that AAA's hymen had healed lacerations at three o'clock and six o'clock positions.6ChanRoblesVirtualawlibrary
Appellant was charged with the crime of rape in an Information, the accusatory portion of which reads as follows:chanRoblesvirtualLawlibrary
That on or about December 15, 2002, at x x x, x x x, Philippines, and within the jurisdiction of this Honorable Court, the above-named accused, did then and there willfully, unlawfully and feloniously committed an act of sexual assault upon AAA, a 6-year old minor, by inserting his penis into her genital, against her will, thereby causing the following on the genital of AAA, to wit:Upon arraignment, appellant pleaded not guilty to the crime charged. During pre-trial, the parties stipulated, among others, that: (1) the nickname of the accused is Iloy; (2) AAA and appellant are neighbors; (3) AAA is the daughter of BBB and that (4) AAA is a minor.8ChanRoblesVirtualawlibrary
Hymen- with healed laceration at 3 & 6 o'clock positions;
Contrary to and in violation of Article 266-A of the Revised Penal Code.7cralawred
WHEREFORE, the [c]ourt finds accused Cerilo "Iloy" Ilogon guilty beyond reasonable doubt of the crime of rape defined and penalized under Article 266-A and 266-B of the Revised Penal Code, as amended, and the said accused is hereby sentenced to suffer the penalty of reclusion perpetua. Moreover, the accused is sentenced to pay the victim the sum of FIFTY THOUSAND PESOS (P50,000.00) by way of moral damages and another sum of FIFTY THOUSAND PESOS (P50,000.00) by way of civil indemnity.12cralawredThe Court of Appeals affirmed the RTC's evaluation of AAA's credibility and found no misapprehension or misappreciation of facts. The Court of Appeals however modified the section on damages, to wit:chanRoblesvirtualLawlibrary
WHEREFORE, the May 12, 2010 Judgment rendered by the Regional Trial Court[,] Branch 37, Cagayan de Oro City in Criminal Case No. 2003-324 finding accused-appellant Cerilo Ilogon guilty beyond reasonable doubt of Rape and sentencing him to suffer the penalty of reclusion perpetua with all the accessory penalties is AFFIRMED with MODIFICATION as to damages.Now before the Court for final review, we affirm appellant's conviction.
Accused-appellant is ORDERED to pay the victim the sum of:
- PhP75,000 as moral damages;
- Civil Indemnity of P75,000.00; and
- Exemplary damages of P30,000.00 with simple interest on the above damages accruing at the rate of six percent (6%) per annum from the finality of this decision until fully paid.13
Article 266-A. Rape; When and. How committed. - Rape is committed -Statutory rape is committed by sexual intercourse with a woman below twelve (12) years of age regardless of her consent, or the lack of it to the sexual act. Proof of force, intimidation, or consent is unnecessary. The absence of free consent is conclusively presumed when the victim is below the age of twelve (12). Sexual congress with a girl under twelve (12) years old is always rape. At that age, the law presumes that the victim does not possess discernment and is incapable of giving intelligent consent to the sexual act. To convict an accused of the crime of statutory rape, the prosecution should prove: (1) the age of the complainant; (2) the identity of the accused; and (3) the sexual intercourse between the accused and the complainant.15ChanRoblesVirtualawlibrary
1. By a man who shall have carnal knowledge of a woman under any of the following circumstances:Article 266-B. Penalties- Rape under paragraph 1 of the next preceding article shall be punished by reclusion perpetua.
- Through force, threat or intimidation;
- When the offended party is deprived of reason or otherwise unconscious;
- By means of fraudulent machination or grave abuse of authority; and
- When the woman is under twelve (12) years of age or is demented, even though none of the circumstances mentioned above be present.
x x x x
The death penalty shall also be imposed if the crime of rape is committed with any of the following attendant circumstances:
x x x x
5) When the victim is a child below seven (7) years old;
x x x xcralawred
Some leading questions were warranted given the circumstances. A child of tender years may be asked leading questions under Section 10(c), Rule 132 of the Rules of Court. Section 20 of the 2000 Rule on Examination of a Child Witness also provides that the court may allow leading questions in all stages of examination of a child if the same will further the interests of justice. This rule was formulated to allow children to give reliable and complete evidence, minimize trauma to children, encourage them to testify in legal proceedings and facilitate the ascertainment of truth.22ChanRoblesVirtualawlibrary
Q: By the way do you know Cerilo Ilogon or Iloy? A: Yes, Ma'am. Q: And are you neighbors with "Iloy"? A: Yes, Ma'am. x x x x Q: Where were you when Iloy removed his clothes in his house? A: I was on the floor. Q: On the floor of Iloy's house? A: Yes, Ma'am. Q: And when Iloy removed his clothes and you were on the floor, what did he do to you if any? A: He covered my mouth. Q: After he covered your mouth, what did he do next? A: He kissed my mouth. x x x x Q: What did he use to prick your vagina AAA? A: His penis. Q: Did you see Iloy used (sic) his penis to prick your vagina [AAA]? A: Yes, Ma'am. x x x x Q: When Iloy pricked your vagina with his penis what did you feel? A: I felt pain. Q: And considering that you felt pain, didn't you shout? A: But he covered my mouth. Q: And after he pricked your vagina with his penis, what if any did Iloy do? A: He also inserted his finger into my vagina. Q: What did you feel when Iloy directed his finger into your vagina? A: It's painful. Q: And did you cry because of the pain? A: Yes, Ma'am.21
Endnotes:
* Additional Member per Raffle dated 13 June 2016.
1Rollo, pp. 3-19; Penned by Associate Justice Carmelita Salandanan-Manahan with Associate Justices Edgardo A. Camello and Pedro B. Corales concurring.
2 Records, pp. 112-117; Presided by Presiding Judge Jose L. Escobido.
3 533 Phil. 703 (2006).
4 TSN, 11 May 2006, pp. 1-9 and 15-16.
5 TSN, 1 February 2006, pp. 9-15; TSN, 11 May 2006, p. 9.
6 Records, p. 75.
7 Id. at 3.
8 Id. at 28.
9 TSN, 5 May 2008, pp. 4-6.
10 TSNs, 16 October 2006, 14 December 2006 and 5 March 2008.
11 TSN, 24 June 2008.
12 Records, p. 117.
13Rollo, pp. 17-18.
14 Effective 22 October 1997.
15People v. Mingming, 594 Phil. 170, 185-186 (2008); See also People v. Sabal, 734 Phil. 742, 745 (2014).
16People v. Pascua, 462 Phil. 245, 252 (2003).
17People v. Aguilar, 643 Phil. 643, 654 (2010) citing People v. Corpuz, 517 Phil. 622 636-637 (2006).
18 Records, p. 74; TSN, 1 February 2006, pp. 3-4.
19 TSN, 11 May 2006, pp. 9-10.
20 Records, pp. 116-117.
21 TSN, 11 May 2006, pp. 6-8.
22People v. Ugos, 586 Phil. 765, 772-773 (2008).
23 Records, p. 75.
24 See People v. Lerio, 381 Phil. 80, 88 (2000).chanrobleslaw
25See People v. Tagana, 468 Phil. 784, 807 (2004).
26 Id. at 807-808.
27 TSN, 14 December 2006, pp. 12-13.
28People v. Sarcia, 615 Phil. 97, 117 (2009).
29 Pursuant to Section 3 of R.A. 9346 (An Act Prohibiting the Imposition of Death Penalty in the Philippines) which states that:chanRoblesvirtualLawlibrarySEC. 3. Persons convicted of offenses punished with reclusion perpetua, or whose sentences will be reduced to reclusion perpetua, by reason of this Act, shall not be eligible for parole under Act No. 4180, otherwise known as the Indeterminate Sentence Law, as amended.cralawred30People v. Gambao, 718 Phil. 507 (2013).
31People v. Vitero, 708 Phil. 49, 65 (2013).